Rush to offload unwanted presents

AUSTRALIANS won’t be wasting any time offloading their unwanted Christmas gifts in return for some fast cash.

Left with more than $18 million in gifts they want to get rid of this festive season, many will list them for sale online.

Research from online classifieds website Gumtree found that last Christmas 54 per cent of people received at least one unwanted Christmas present.

And the dud gifts were worth a decent amount of money — the average value was $87.

The research found among the most unwanted gifts was incorrectly-sized clothes (31 per cent), personal care products (25 per cent), books (13 per cent) and household items including furniture, decor and homewares (10 per cent).

Gumtree’s spokeswoman Amanda Behre said selling unwanted items online was a good way to make some quick money, particularly for those left with hefty Christmas bills.

“It’s one of our busiest times of year for people selling their items,” she said. “Post-Christmas we see about a 293 per cent uplift from Boxing Day through to the 29th of December of people listing new things and unwanted gifts.”

Ms Behre said there are plenty of good deals to be had for shoppers looking to snap up competitive deals: “The morning of Boxing Day and quite often through until the evening is the peak time for people listing and going to search items.”

Ms Behre said among the top items listed at this time of year was electronic goods including iPads, Apple watches and gaming consoles, followed by home and garden items including barbecues, tables and decor.

Consumer finance expert Lisa Montgomery said while many people would rush to offload gifts, “let’s not forget the spirit of Christmas”.

“It’s the intention of giving that we shall value,” she said.